Legends of Sakanoue no Tamuramaro

The Shoku Nihongi and Nihon Kōki record that Sakanoue no Tamuramaro served as Vice-General in Enryaku 13 (794) and was appointed Sei-i Taishōgun in Enryaku 16 (797), leading campaigns against the Emishi in northern Honshu. In Enryaku 17 (798) he founded Kiyomizu-dera, which became an imperial votive temple under Emperor Kanmu. The Muromachi-period otogi-zōshi "Tamura no Sōshi" reframes him as the legendary Sakanoue no Tamuramaru, who marries Suzuka Gozen and slays the demons Takamaru of Ōmi and Ōtakemaru of Mount Suzuka. The Noh play "Tamura" links the legend to the founding of Kiyomizu-dera. The Nihon Kōki records that on his death in Kōnin 2 (811) he was buried with armor and weapons.

The cycle divides into the historical chronicle of the northern campaigns and the temple founding, and the legendary cycle of Tamuramaru, Suzuka Gozen, and the demon slayings. The two strands developed across rikkokushi histories, otogi-zōshi, Noh, and oku-jōruri.

Kiyomizu-dera in Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto, founded as an imperial votive temple. Mount Suzuka on the Mie-Shiga border, the legendary home of Suzuka Gozen and Ōtakemaru. The Tamura district in Ōshū, Iwate Prefecture, preserves traditions of the Emishi campaigns.

Shoku Nihongi (Sugano no Mamichi et al., 797). Nihon Kōki (Fujiwara no Fuyutsugu et al., 840). The Muromachi otogi-zōshi "Tamura no Sōshi." Noh play "Tamura." Kikuoka Senryō, Shokoku Rijin Dan (1743). The Kokushi Taikei editions (Keizai Zasshi-sha, 1914) preserve pre-1945 critical texts.